Prospect Profile: Xavier Worthy, WR, Texas

Context

Played in a hybrid slot/Z role for Texas, where they schemed a lot of free releases for him, putting him in motion at the snap and in stack formations.

Before the Catch

When facing soft shoe press at the line of scrimmage he can use explosion and speed, as well as a varied release package in his footwork to close the space to the Defensive Back and win in the early portion of the route. However, when the DB presses him with a jam, he does not play with solid play strength, his hands are not well timed or accurate and the defender will normally stay stuck on him throughout the rest of the route when this is the case. This is because his lack of play strength extends to the break-point and the catch-point, where he is unable to separate from savvy CBs who can use their size and strength to stay in phase. When facing bail coverage, he doesn’t read coverage at a high level and his lack of processing when facing any kind of Zone coverage hurts his play speed. When facing off coverage, he attacks leverage well and doesn’t have to process as much as he is facing man, so he eats up the cushion quickly.

When he is facing man coverage, he can use his athleticism – specifically his ridiculous speed and explosion – to blow past even very athletic CBs. This is mostly on go routes or hitches and comebacks where the straight-line athleticism he has can come into its own. Hitches against off coverage by DBs that don’t process at a high level or match his athleticism are easy money for him; he will attack at full speed with a stem that is hard to read and stops on a dime. On routes that call for more of a lateral break, he isn’t technically sound and it affects his play speed. On deeper routes that require a bam step (corner/post routes), there is little salesmanship, his stem isn’t consistent and tips his hand to the DB, and he throws a leg out to the side with little purpose when trying to sell the go route before making the break. He can get by stiff hipped safeties because of his speed. He doesn’t attack intermediate routes with a 2-step break like digs with the same speed as more linear routes and it means DBs can sit on him and keep him in phase at the top of his route. He also loses speed in the transition on these routes and speed cuts to make out routes.

The Catch and after the Catch

When catching outside his frame from a stationary position or working back to the QB, he attacks the ball well with the correct hand position. He has poor attack of targets thrown outside his frame to the side of his body when running parallel to the line of scrimmage, with poor hand position to secure the ball. He tracks the deep ball well and catches the ball well over his outside shoulder when thrown in stride. But if the ball is underthrown or thrown over his inside shoulder, he will make a strange adjustment with his body which actually increases the degree of difficulty on the catch for him. He can also too quickly move to a cradle position when catching softer thrown targets or balls thrown in front of him. He has ludicrous speed after the catch and makes even the most athletic defenders look silly with their angles, but doesn’t win as often as you would like with change of direction, and any kind of contact puts him down.

SUMMARY
Ludicrously athletic with world-class speed. Translates well for more linear routes and to beat defenders’ angles but lateral breaks need some work. Hands are also deficient.

PRODUCTION
JR: 119 Tgts, 75 Recs, 1014 Rec Yards (13.5 Ave), 5 Rec TDs
SO: 113 Tgts, 59 Recs, 757 Rec Yards (12.8 Ave), 8 Rec TDs
INJURY: None

RAVENS FIT
Athleticism 5
Intelligence 2
Versatility 2
Grit 4
Scheme 4